Eleven Canadian paintings, valued at almost $400,000, were stolen from a Toronto gallery late Sunday night or early Monday morning.

The loot included five paintings by Group of Seven artists.

Det. Al Flis said the gallery’s owner, Michel Bigué, called police around 1:15 a.m. Monday after the alarm was tripped at the Canadian Fine Arts store at 577 Mount Pleasant Rd.

Flis said that such notable works of art can be difficult to cash in on.

“The people in the industry . . . the word gets out and they understand which [paintings] are outstanding, so it’s not an easy thing to fence off this stuff,” he said.

Flis said it was possible, though “hard to say” whether the suspect(s) may have had a potential buyer in advance, but added, “It’s pretty unusual that someone would go to the extreme of stealing this kind of artwork, so there’s a purpose behind it, right?”

Charles Reeve, a Toronto curator and associate professor at the Ontario College of Art and Design, commented on a high profile art theft several months ago.

In April, three paintings, valued at $73,000, were stolen from the Odon Wagner Gallery in Yorkville. Two men were eventually arrested and charged with break and enter and mischief over $5,000.

Reeve told the TorontoStar that stolen art can suffer a number of different fates. Usually when a famous piece of art goes missing, it is because a crazed collector has commissioned people to steal it or the thieves hold on to it for ransom, he said.

He added that any sale of the paintings would likely garner considerably less than their worth since their value would plummet if the pieces were damaged.

The latest theft includes works by A.Y. Jackson, Frank Johnston, J.E.H. MacDonald, Frederick J. Varley and Alfred J. Casson, all of the Group of Seven.

The single most expensive piece, a painting by A.Y. Jackson, entitled Les Eboulements, is valued at $135,000.

Police said they will be releasing video footage of the incident once they obtain it.

Currently, there is no word on any suspects.

Police are asking anyone with information to contact Det. Flis or Det. Const. Erwin Huber at 416-808-5306 or 416-808-5364, or Crime Stoppers anonymously at 416-222-TIPS (8477).

Bigué and staff at the Canadian Fine Arts store could not be reached for comment.